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We often feel unappreciated. We do all these things for other people, but it feels like a thankless waste as no one’s acknowledges us. We expect something from the things we do, achieve, etc. But nobody acknowledges us? Well guess what the most important thing is to feel self appreciation for all you do. In my kids class when a child says, “Aunty, aunty look at me!”, I reply, “That is great but how do you feel? You do not need me to like what you are doing, you need to feel good about what you are doing.”

This is what Yogi Bhajan says about appreciation, “If you appreciate your life, if you appreciate your job, if you appreciate yourself, if you appreciate your surroundings—poor or rich, whatever they are—you are divine. The principle is that you are divine when you appreciate whatever you are. You must appreciate your job, no matter how dirty it is. You must appreciate your misery, no matter how painful it is. The moment you start appreciating misery it will run away. You don’t have to do anything. That’s why you all suffer. Misery doesn’t need appreciation. Misery needs to give you pain. The purpose of misery is to put you through pain. As soon as you start appreciating misery, its purpose is lost. How is misery going to be there?” The Universal consciousness is around and within us, if we can feel appreciation.

Last week I understood this concept. When I was going through a feeling of being really stuck, annoyed, off centre, frustrated, just for a moment I was able to break through and ask myself ok, there must be a lesson in this? Guru Singh’s punch line is, there so much fresh shit around, if I dig deep enough I will find the pony.

How are you going to tap into appreciation when your day falls apart when you are at your worst?

Practical Tips

Move away from the object of frustration, take a deep breath, go and have a shower or drink a cold class of water, or if you have time go for a swim, change the electromagnetic field of negativity around you. Refresh and reboot yourself. Say to yourself even though this is not going well, I appreciate myself and the situation. I will learn the lesson that comes out of this situation, even if I do not understand why this is happening. Do not try to engage your brain, it will only say that life is no fare, there is no justice and why it is happening to me? Drop your expectations of the situation and appreciate what is at the present moment.

There is no gain without effort, therefore creating the habit of Sadhana (spiritual disciplined practice) in your life is a worthy investment in your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.

Sadhana can be defined as, whatever you do consistently to awaken your consciousness so that you can relate your higher self. To cover all aspects, it will include some form of yoga or exercise and meditation. You can do it on your own or in the group. The best time to practice is in the Amrit Vela which is 2 hours before sunrise or sunset 4-7am or 4-7pm daily.

When I thought about writing about Sadhana, I wanted to give you an idea of what my motivation is to do a daily spiritual practice as well as group Sadhana.

On many fronts, I would say that before I began practicing Kundalini Yoga and doing a daily practice, I found it very hard to motivate myself, especially when it came to physical exercise and meditation. I am one of those soft people, who loves comfort, cosiness and really lazing around. I had not really nurtured discipline in my life, especially the physical or emotional sort. I was very self-absorbed and believed my internal mental dialog. I had quite a shock when I realised that I was indeed not my mind or emotions and that the clarity of the real me, was buried deep down under a ton of pre-conceived ideas most of which were not even my own.

Sadhana began as a chore for me. I got bored by my practice, used it to daydream about other things but keep on just doing it. Very slowly it started to work, very subtly without even my conscious knowledge.

When you start a consistent Sadhana practice be prepared for many subconscious blocks to challenge you and prevent you from keeping up a daily practice. Whether it be, not being able to sleep the night before, feeling sick, running late, family problems or just your alarm not going off. But as you build up your will power to overcome your mental and physical excuses it becomes easier to become more committed to yourself. Your mind becomes clearer as subconscious fears and unhealthy patterns that normally hold you in their grip are released. Doubt is released and your mind becomes sure. You become clear and start feeling more joy, being able to deal neutrally with fears and anxieties as they arise, as you have started the day by tuning your body, mind instrument to start reflecting that inner radiance in you.

This is my motivation for doing a daily and group Sadhana, I feel the benefits of having greater mental clarity to see what is real and what is just an illusion created by my mind. I am able to see my emotional patterns especially the unhealthy ones. This manifests in my new-found ability not to automatically speak my mind, which may create drama or karma, instead watch my mind and not react to its internal dialog.

I know I have a long way to go but by keeping up almost an uninterrupted practice for the last 14 years, I really see the benefits in my life. So, my challenge to you is, try it, keep going for 1 year and if you see no benefits stop. If you do feel better continue. Keep your motivation in mind when you feel tired, or angry you have to do your practice last thing at night. Remember sadhana clears the subconscious shadows, the automatic patterns of behaviour that make you feel bad or guilty after reacting to a situation. Try coming to a group Sadhana, I lead one once a week every Wed 5-7.30am 9 Greenlands Lane, Col 5, just sms to confirm you are coming or attend the first Saturday of the month at The Om Space.

Life just synchronises sometimes, because as I write this we are on day 2 of Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training Level 1 and tomorrow morning Tonie Nooyens our Lead Teacher trainer in Asia will be leading a Sadhana and Kriya called the 10 bodies which correspondence with this post.

I met a man this summer at Solstice in who told me the story of how Yogi Bhajan managed to get the technology of the 10 Bodies. The story goes that he tracked down a yogi who had spent his life mastering the technology but refused to pass on the knowledge. He said he would take it to his grave. Then Yogi Bhajan said prepare to die, because it is no use having this knowledge if you do not want share it with humanity. Eventually he reluctantly gave it to him.

Throughout the ages the importance of dates, including our date of birth has been revered by many cultures. Tantric numerology is a technology that uses numbers and significant dates to establish and understanding our strengths and weaknesses. Once you understand these its gives you a plan and guidelines on how to improve the areas of weakness and utilise your strengths.

The system Yogi Bhajan uses reduces every number above 11 and relates it to one of our 10 bodies plus 11th the number called embodiment. The numbers relate to the journey of our soul from its essence as it moves from the grosser forms of existence the physical body, to the conscious forces of thought, through the more esoteric frequencies of electromagnetic field.

1 The number of the soul as it emerges from the infinite.

2 Once the soul emerges from the infinite, it gets surrounded by thought. Which comprises of the 3 functional minds. The first being the negative mind.

3 The positive mind

4 The neutral mind

5 The soul and mind find expression in the physical body.

6 The soul, mind and physical body needs guidance which comes from the clarity of the arc line.

7 The aura is the flow of electromagnetic energy within and around the physical body. It interconnects with the 7th chakra and is the space through which we hold and release our past experiences.

8 The pranic body fills us with energy and which fuels our spiritual growth.

9 The subtle body is the vehicle which allows us to understand the subtle flow of energies in the world.

10 The Radiant body finds radiance in all the other bodies.

11 the Embodiment is the point from which the soul and radiant body unite. A union between heaven and earth.

Just as last week we used the addition of the numbers for this year 2017 to give us meaning and direction for our energies. You can do the same with your birth date, the day of the week, to give yourself a sense of direction and guidance. You can read more about this technology from the following website and the master of Numerology Shiv Charan Singh http://www.karamkriya.com.

I innately knew and my body was preparing in November for 2017 (2+0+1+7 = 10) a number 10 year, of Mastery or self-illumination.

The tradition of tantric numerology, the kundalini yogic science of numbers was transmitted to Yogi Bhajan by a yogi who had made a life study of this technology. Essentially it is the frequency of the soul as it travels through life’s journey in its various energetic frequencies. I will write a longer blog next week all about Tantric numerology.

The number 10 in this system depicts the subtle energy of the Radiant Body, the Body of Light. It is the light of the soul shining through the transparent ego. A protective radiance which will dissolve attacking projections, at the auric level of your being. The polarity of the Radiant Body is that this circle of protection can become suffocating, oppressive and can prevent you from stepping into your mastery and excellence. Instead of a Master you feel a Fraud. It is time to recognise you are the light and that you can be the change you want to see.

In 2017 we get to really see what we are made of, we either commit to the sacredness of our own divinity, individuality and courage, in celebration and mastery of the illuminated self where the finite No one’s power is magnified by the 0, or the one turns inwards and we fall into loneliness, feeling like an outsider, fearful and isolated.

Having read a lot about 2017, from it being the year of mastering the emotional self, to the new wave of nootropics, a buzz word for biohacking, which is getting the best out of your brain and body, by using drugs and self-stimulants. I feel by going deep and developing a better understanding of yourself, your needs physically and emotionally, through self-care, we will really become the master of ourselves.

On a practical note, stretching into your body everyday no matter what method this is, some form of yoga, swimming, stretch class, etc. Bringing your conscious awareness to your breath, eating, waking, walking, typing, etc. Spending time chanting, singing, listening to your own words, internal and external, will help attune your senses to become more sensitive to YOU, and your needs. This in turn will allow you to understand what food serves and nourishes you. Not what someone else tells you in a magazine or the latest fashion but how do I feel when I eat this? Bloated, windy, heavy, light, fresh nourished? Spend time asking yourself these questions, about everything in your life.

Stop the judgement. This is year is about altitude, seeing the whole picture from above not narrow minded judgement. Decide to discern what suites you best and do not pass judgement on what suites someone else, even if they are your child, grandchild, parent or partner.

This year you need to see or recognise the problem, challenge or block in your life, stop condemning or blaming and know that the problem is there to guide you. Come to a point of stillness and clarity and become the solution to your problem.

If you want more peace, be more peaceful and kind to everyone around you. If you want more prosperity, be more generous without wanting anything in return, even good karma. Be the change you want to see in the world and then you will not need to spend endless time worrying, blaming or condemning all that is in existence at this time. Then, this year will bring you genuine joy and you will be the master of yourself and all you pervade.

Thanks to all my teachers, Sunder Singh, Shiv Charan Singh, Guru Singh and my family the greatest teachers of them all.

Every element of the Universe is in a constant state of vibration manifested to us as light, sound, and energy. The human senses perceive only a fraction of the infinite range of vibration, so it is difficult to comprehend that sound and vibration underlies and sustains all creation.

The sound current or Shabad is the frequency that can dissolve your personality and mind patterns so you are left in your elemental pure state.

The Shabad Guru, (Shabad- sound current and Guru -teacher) the sound that is the teacher, is the quantum technology developed and given to us by the enlightened master Guru Nanak which directly alters our consciousness through the power of the Naad removing the constrictions and distortions of the ego.

Guru Nanak was born on 14 November 1469 into a relatively high caste Hindu family. At a very young age, he began questioning everything: the empty rituals that seemed meaningless; the arbitrary division of people based on caste; the lower status of women. He studied with yogis, scholars and developed a very high level of consciousness.

During an enlightenment experience he bought a new quantum technology to humanity. He realised that by using the sound current you could reach altered states of mind and enlightenment, i.e. to experience the finite you and the infinite you at the same time. He recorded his experiences in the Song of the Soul, Japji.

Practical

If I had a traumatic event that happened 10 years ago but I am now pulling that event into the present moment because I do not know how to control my mind, I can become easily manipulated by outside events. When my mind is constantly anaylsing the events of 10 years ago I am filling up my electromagnetic field with these thought currents. My electromagnetic field now begins to broadcast these thoughts out, sending me more of the same problems, a catch 22 loop. What I need to do is move beyond this event. I do this by using the quantum technology of sound to redirect my mind to be in a better state of awareness.

Reciting Japji and other Shabad sounds over time redirects the mind. The mind is going to go where you point it. So when we use the science of naad we are using our mind in an intelligent way. It helps us deal with our mental problems and projections by directing our mind into the neutral space. (Please see last week’s blog 7.11.2016 on neutral mind). Kundalini yogic science is a transportation system which enables you to view your problems from a different perspective, (the perspective of the neutral mind) that can allow you to drop problems out of your awareness instead of getting stuck in an analytical fog.

For example, reciting a Shabad mantra like SA, TA, NA, MA or listening to the Gong will redirect the mind to change its elemental perception of what it is focusing on.

Instead of my problems suddenly my mind is filled with this sound, rhythm and momentum which creates a physical chemical change in my perception.

Through Naad yoga, using our lips, moving our tongue to hit certain meridian points in our upper pallet, we can alter consciousness by changing the chemical composition of the fluids and neurochemicals in the brain.

It moves me into a different state of awareness where I can deal with my problems by dropping them out of my awareness. Problems fade as you move past them and move to a different space of awareness.

Death is the death of our physical body and five senses not of our soul. The soul moves either on to its next incarnation or to join with the infinite. Yogi Bhajan joked that it did not matter if you believed in reincarnation or not it happened despite one’s belief.

One of the reasons we practice yoga is as a preparation for the moment of death. That in the instance that our final breath expires, the soul is confronted with all you have done throughout your life and you must choose to forgive yourself at this moment otherwise attachment to shame, guilt, or pride can bring you back to the incarnations of life. We must make the conscious choice to move on into oneness or continue with the world as we have known it. Yogi Bhajan referred to this time as “choosing the cold path”. He said the soul would confront two roads, one cold and unfamiliar, one warm and cozy. The cold path would lead the soul onwards and the warm familiar path would lead one back into the womb for rebirth. To escape the wheel of karma is the goal of each soul, and so the moment of death is incredibly important, as that is when the choice is made. The discipline of sadhana, cold showers, waking up before the dawn and keeping up in meditation. These practices train the mind to follow choice and intention rather than laziness and habit. We are literally training ourselves to take the difficult cold path but ultimately more rewarding road to enlightenment.

In the moment of death, mantra can help a soul move into the blue ethers and escape the electromagnetic field of the earth. The difference between dying with a swear word on your lips and dying with “Waheguru” can make all the difference. There are many stories from India of parables about this. One story that I love is that a very bad man, a thief and liar was killed by a man named Ram. In surprise, he exclaimed “Ram!” (a name of God in addition to the man’s name) and was surprised to find himself elevated in a more powerful incarnation, such was the power of the vibration of the name.

Whether you believe the parables or not, Yogi Bhajan gave a mantra called the “Pran Sutra” which literally means the “Teaching of Life Force” and gives us a tool to use at the moment of death to train and focus the mind onto a higher vibration.

The Pran Sutra mantra is “Nanak too(n) lehanaa too(n) hai Guru amar too(n) veechaariaa Dhan Ram Das Gur Jin sireeaa tinia savariaa. This mantra brings you through the energy of the first four Sikh gurus, ending at Guru Ram Das, Lord of Miracles and the Guru associated with the heart chakra. It focuses the consciousness of the reciter onto the energy of the heart, the energy of miracles, and entreats divine assistance with the passage of life.

The Pran Sutra is a tool given by Yogi Bhajan to prepare our soul to take the right steps in the moment after we pass. It is a beautiful gift that we can give to ourselves and a wonderful teaching to include in our life as well as our death.

When I was younger I felt a little superior as I thought I was such a happy and positive person and got upset when someone said anything negative or critical.

I have now come to understand what the negative mind is and how it works. We all have 3 functional minds the negative mind being the first one and the strongest. It is the strongest because it is the protective mind, your alarm system. Its value is that it warns you of danger or if you will be at a disadvantage. If the negative mind had not been strong in ancient times your genetic line would not have survived to produce YOU. But when we let our negative mind get too strong it can make our life a living hell. We see danger everywhere instead of opportunity or choice.

The second functional mind is the positive mind. It is expansive and sees the gain or advantage in any situation. The third mind, the neutral mind is not scared by the negative mind or fooled by the wishful thinking of the positive mind. It is conscious and wise giving you the solution that you can trust, that has your best interests at heart.

So we should be aware of what the negative mind says, but use the other 2 minds to assess it, in order to decide if the treat is real or perceived.

Last week I was at Borderlands in Kitual Gala and went river cannoning, which entails climbing, sliding and jumping down a river. Many times my negative mind became so strong, I could feel my heartbeat, fear made everything around me come into intense focus. I could see light glinting off the beautiful butterfly, the sound of the river pounding the rocks, the intense green of the trees around me. But I let my other minds tell me that the risk of injury was very small, that jumping from 15ft into a beautiful pool was fun and the risk was not real only perceived.

Practical

Now we have understood our own negative thought process, lets deal with external negativity. It is easy to feel that other people are ruining your mood because of their thoughts, words and actions. Other people can put your plans down, tell you, you can never achieve your dreams, or just moan or complain. This can dissolve your good mood.

1.Always Ask Why do I react to this?

But is it our reaction to that person or situation that really kills the good mood. It is much easier to go off and live on your own in a cave and practice a yogic lifestyle and philosophy, but if you want to live in this practical world and be a yogi you have to deal with all the normal challenges and work on yourself internally to transform reactions to other people’s negativity. Ask yourself the questions, “What is it in me that reacts to someone else’s negative words, actions?” Is it a reflection of some subconscious fears, negativity, etc. that you have not acknowledged and dealt with yet? Instead of blaming the other it is much more productive to look within.

2.Non judgmental

As yogis we do not learn yoga to feel superior to others, above all of these human emotions, instead we allow it to makes us REAL, approachable, fearless to discover all our shadows and shine our conscious awareness on them. This all sounds easy to do but it takes patience, time and practice.

3. Work on your Aura

3 mins of breath of fire per day will help increase the strength and power of your electromagnetic field or aura. Your aura protects you from negativity, internally within yourself and externally. The stronger the aura the less you feel the effect of outside lower energy frequencies, whether it be people or places. There are many other practices to increase your aura, the cold shower ishnaan, wearing white or a light colour made of natural material, yoga especially for the electromagnetic field.

4. Lead by Example

People who practice yoga know the magic it creates in our lives. If yoga has allowed you to have a more positive outlook on life, share that with the negative people in your life. Do not preach, but bring in inspirational stories into your conversation. When someone wants to gossip, say plainly that I do not feel comfortable talking about that person. Explain to them how you’ve been able to see the good in things and how this has made all things in life more enjoyable. By giving them tools to change rather than isolating or attacking them, you are helping them to change on their own.

Kundalini is the life force of awareness. When we elevate the Kundalini we encounter a force in our nervous system and mind that strips away all that is not needed. Awareness can be defined by the quality of your conscious in combination with the rely of the sensory information that is sent to you to at any given moment.

Kundalini energy is often referred to as a sudden fiery, mind blowing energy travelling up the spine to elevate your consciousness; so called Kundalini rising. This dramatic experience may well happen to some people, but the technology of Kundalini Yoga that has been given to us by Yogi Bhajan creates a subtle experience. My experience is of this gentle subtle energy and subtle changes in my life. I have had an awakening but it is very much a work in progress, captured in my experience of feeling greater and greater awareness during certain moments in my day when I have the presence to move my attention from my busy mind with its worries and doubts, into my body and breath. These moments of being aware of the finite in my inhale and the infinite in the exhale allow me to open up to life. I more easily catch my mind as it becomes frustrated with the reality of a situation and move beyond its limited interpretation of life to one where all solutions and possibilities are a reality. Catching the blame and forgiving it, before it turns inwards and destroys the self-love that I have carefully nurtured.

Our expectations of a situations set ourselves up to catch that moment. Like the calculations you make to catch a ball in your hands. I find that the development of my awareness, allows me to calculate and prepare less so instead of living through my expectations I can be more flexible in my acceptance of the IS. Instead of setting up the moment with my old expectations, life can now open up and allow a new future to arrive. As we continually grow our awareness we get better and better at catching ourselves when we slip back into old patterns of blaming, non-acceptance, rage, frustration etc.

Practical

Have supreme patience with yourself, start your day with pre forgiveness for the times you will slip up during the day and forgive yourself each time you do. Take time to bless yourself and count your blessing. Explore life with innocent wonder. Realise your potential as an infinite being in a finite body. Realise that each moment is part of the infinite, even if it is not what you desire. Allow yourself and others around you to flourish without dulling their spirits.

Kriya to connect with your infinite source of energy

1. Sit in easy pose. Stretch your left arm out to the side with the fingers in gyan mudra and the palm up. The right elbow is bent, the palm faces forward, and the hand is about the level of the ear. The right thumb and sun finger (ring finger) connect to form surya mudra while the other fingers point upward. Inhale and exhale. Hold the breath out and pull the navel, mentally chanting “Har” with each pull of the navel. Begin by chanting “Har” eight times with the breath held out. When you are comfortable with that, increase the number of times you pull the navel and mentally chant “Har” until you can chant “Har” twenty times before you inhale. 11 Minutes.

To finish: Rapidly pump the navel 108 times either with the breath held in or with the breath held out. (Your choice)